Greenpeace and other campaign groups are taking the European Commission to court, seeking to overturn European Union rules that class nuclear energy and natural gas as climate-friendly investments.

The groups are targeting the EU’s “taxonomy”, a list of investments that can be labelled and marketed as sustainable in Europe.

The complex scheme aims to guide investors toward projects that support the EU’s climate change goals.

The Commission decided last year to add some gas and nuclear plants to the list – a proposal that became mired in controversy and was repeatedly delayed amid lobbying from governments that disagree with the fuels’ green credentials.

In its lawsuit, Greenpeace asks the EU General Court – part of the Court of Justice of the EU – to exclude gas and nuclear from the rules.

It argues the EU has violated its own climate laws, citing the CO2 emissions produced by gas power plants, and said the rules risk diverting investments away from renewable energy.

A separate lawsuit, also due to be filed on Tuesday, from four campaign groups including ClientEarth and WWF, seeks to overturn the rules on gas on similar grounds.

“Fossil gas is not clean, not cheap and not a secure source of energy,” a representative for the four groups said.

A European Commission representative said the EU executive took note of the legal action but declined to comment further.

The Commission has previously said gas and nuclear plants must meet “strict conditions” to win the EU green label, including an emissions limit for gas plants.

The EU rules exposed deep rifts between countries over which energy sources to use to meet climate change goals.

Spain, Denmark and others had argued it was not credible to label gas, a CO2-emitting fossil fuel, as climate-friendly.

Poland, Bulgaria and others said gas investments were needed to help them phase out more CO2-intensive coal plants.

The Commission is also facing a legal challenge from the Austrian government, seeking to reject the green label for gas and nuclear.

– AAP